Elements of Physical Hydrology

By Jeffrey P. Raffensperger, Patricia L. Wiberg, George M. Hornberger

Book Overview

The most cogent textbook ever produced on the topic, this revised and expanded edition will be welcomed by students and professionals alike.

Among the many diverse aspects of environmental science, none is more critical to the future of society and nature than water. Understanding the role of water on Earth and making good decisions regarding water conservation and hydrological hazards depends on learning the fundamentals of physical hydrology. This textbook, now in an expanded second edition, provides the clearest opportunity for students to absorb those fundamentals. Written at an introductory level, Elements of Physical Hydrology covers virtually every aspect of this subject, including:

- The hydrological cycle
- Water budgets at catchment to global scales
- Spatial and temporal aspects of precipitation
- Evapotranspiration
- Fluid dynamics and the Bernoulli equation
- Laminar and turbulent flows
- Open channel flow
- Flood movement through reservoirs and channels
- Flood frequency analysis
- Groundwater flow
- Aquifer characterization
- Land subsidence
- Soil moisture dynamics
- Flow in the unsaturated zone
- Hydrologic controls on vegetation
- Biotic controls on hydrological processes
- Runoff generation from surface and subsurface sources
- Catchment models
- The water-food-energy nexus
- The globalization of water
- Impacts of changing climate

Layering one topic upon the next, Elements of Physical Hydrology succeeds in moving from simple, easy-to-grasp explanations through equations and models in a manner that will leave students new to the topic eager to apply their knowledge. Professionals in related disciplines will also find this book ideal for self-study. Thoughtfully illustrated, carefully written, and covering a broad spectrum of topics, this classic text clarifies a subject that is often misunderstood and oversimplified.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1421413736
• ISBN13: 9781421413730
• Release Date: August 2014
• Publisher: Johns Hopkins University Press
• Length: 388 Pages
• Weight: 2.25 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 7.0" x 10.5"
• Grade Range: Postsecondary

Customer Reviews

Physical Hydrology

This book is perfect for the determinist hydrology. Some applications are joined to this book in a CD. Good luck for the water scientists.

Excellent book by any standard

This is a sort of elementary textbook, and should help biologists, chemists, environmentalists, and geologists to obtain fundamentals of hydraulics and hydrology. I am a professional hydrologist, but still enjoyed reading that book. The main value is in proper selection of the subjects, and exceptionally clear explanation. Reading other books, many a times I had a feeling that the author had not fully understood the subject. The authors of Elements of Physical Hydrology have a great talent to make any subject simple, and they know what they are talking about. Excellent book!

Cutting-edge technology textbook will set the trend for 2000

This book comes with an accompanying CD-ROM that contains the entire book, as well as powerful features that cannot be used within the constaints of paper and ink. Movies, appendices, internet links, and real-time mathematical models can be run in the context of a well-written text. Helpful interactive end-of-chapter Q/A sections and the ability to search though the text or automatically click linked words to see their definition in the gloassary is yet unparalelled in today's classrooms. A must have just for the approach to teaching!